Sierra Nevada changes opening date to July 2013

Published: Tuesday, August 14, 2012 at 9:27 p.m.

Last Modified: Tuesday, August 14, 2012 at 9:27 p.m.

MILLS RIVER — Sierra Nevada Brewing Company has moved its opening date up from November 2013 to July, a co-manager of the brewery said Thursday.

Stan Cooper, who will manage the Mills River facility along with Brian Grossman, presented an update about the plant's progress during a Mills River Town Council meeting. Carrie Alden, Human Resources manager for the Sierra Nevada location in Mills River, presented information about workforce benefits and employee hiring expectations.

The company announced in January that it had chosen Henderson County for its East Coast expansion. Officials with the Chico, Calif.-based brewery — the nation's second-largest craft-beer producer, which distributes to all 50 states — elected to build at Ferncliff Industrial Park.

The company decided to move up its opening date in order to get beer production off the ground as quickly as possible, Cooper said.

In addition to the brewing and bottling operations, plans call for a visitor's center to include a restaurant and tasting room. Several small lodges for “beer camp” attendees will also be built on the property.

The next several months will be a busy time as the company works through the construction phase, Cooper told the council.

“A number of things will go on with the project simultaneously,” he said. “We need production, so we're going to get the brewery up and running by the middle of next year. The other things — the visitor's center, the daycare center for our employees — those things will come after the brewery is done.”

Grading work at the site has been completed, he said, adding that great care has been taken to ensure that the driveway leading up to the plant blends in with the natural surroundings. As many trees as possible were spared during the grading process, and those that had to be cut down will be recycled as part of the building materials for the new construction.

Cooper updated council members on other aspects of the project, such as alternative energy sources and solar panels that will be used. He also shared plans for road improvements, including the state Department of Transportation's idea for a commercial roundabout on Fanning Bridge Road to calm traffic.

The roundabout will allow motorists to either take the road from Fanning Bridge to Ferncliff Industrial Park; take Sierra Nevada Way, which will lead to the Visitor's Center; or continue on through Fanning Bridge Road, he said.

The company also has an agreement with Norfolk Southern railway for rail service to Fletcher Business Park, where product materials will be transferred to trucks for transport over the five miles from Fletcher to the Mills River plant, Cooper explained.

Employee benefits

Sierra Nevada has a lot to offer potential employees, said Alden. The company prides itself on being a good place to work with benefits and perks, such as “beer bucks,” which are good for one case of product per payroll period, she said.

Sierra Nevada provides a 401k plan that employees are eligible for after 90 days. Once employees are eligible, the company matches dollar-for-dollar what the employee contributes to his or her 401k plan up to 10 percent, with employees also being eligible for profit sharing, Alden explained.

“It's amazing — it's a really good benefits package,” she said, adding that the Mills River site will boast an employee medical clinic staffed with a physician and a nurse practitioner and on-site day care/preschool for children, grandchildren and nieces and nephews of employees. “These are the things that make us different.”

The first major wave of hiring is expected to take place in April and May of next year, she said, with about 60 production workers needed to get plant operations under way. The next phase will take place by the end of 2013 and that wave will be designed to hire between 75 and 80 full- and part-time employees primarily for guest experience services, Alden said.

Key positions such as a head brewer and quality manager and a packaging manager have already been filled, she added.

An environmental health and safety officer, head electrician, a brewing/cellar/filtration supervisor, packaging supervisor, a systems analyst, warehouse supervisor, sanitation supervisor and a groundskeeper supervisor are all positions Sierra Nevada officials expect to fill in the months leading up to the plant's opening next July, Alden said.

The company will be assisted in its job placement efforts by Blue Ridge Community College, and, to a lesser extent, the Hendersonville office of the N.C. Division of Workforce Solutions' (formerly the N.C. Employment Security Commission), she said.

Cooper said he believes Sierra Nevada's Mills River facility will be “a credit to the community.”

<p>MILLS RIVER — Sierra Nevada Brewing Company has moved its opening date up from November 2013 to July, a co-manager of the brewery said Thursday. </p><p>Stan Cooper, who will manage the Mills River facility along with Brian Grossman, presented an update about the plant's progress during a Mills River Town Council meeting. Carrie Alden, Human Resources manager for the Sierra Nevada location in Mills River, presented information about workforce benefits and employee hiring expectations. </p><p>The company announced in January that it had chosen Henderson County for its East Coast expansion. Officials with the Chico, Calif.-based brewery — the nation's second-largest craft-beer producer, which distributes to all 50 states — elected to build at Ferncliff Industrial Park. </p><p>The company decided to move up its opening date in order to get beer production off the ground as quickly as possible, Cooper said.</p><p>In addition to the brewing and bottling operations, plans call for a visitor's center to include a restaurant and tasting room. Several small lodges for “beer camp” attendees will also be built on the property. </p><p>The next several months will be a busy time as the company works through the construction phase, Cooper told the council.</p><p>“A number of things will go on with the project simultaneously,” he said. “We need production, so we're going to get the brewery up and running by the middle of next year. The other things — the visitor's center, the daycare center for our employees — those things will come after the brewery is done.”</p><p>Grading work at the site has been completed, he said, adding that great care has been taken to ensure that the driveway leading up to the plant blends in with the natural surroundings. As many trees as possible were spared during the grading process, and those that had to be cut down will be recycled as part of the building materials for the new construction. </p><p>Cooper updated council members on other aspects of the project, such as alternative energy sources and solar panels that will be used. He also shared plans for road improvements, including the state Department of Transportation's idea for a commercial roundabout on Fanning Bridge Road to calm traffic.</p><p>The roundabout will allow motorists to either take the road from Fanning Bridge to Ferncliff Industrial Park; take Sierra Nevada Way, which will lead to the Visitor's Center; or continue on through Fanning Bridge Road, he said. </p><p>The company also has an agreement with Norfolk Southern railway for rail service to Fletcher Business Park, where product materials will be transferred to trucks for transport over the five miles from Fletcher to the Mills River plant, Cooper explained.</p><p>Employee benefits</p><p>Sierra Nevada has a lot to offer potential employees, said Alden. The company prides itself on being a good place to work with benefits and perks, such as “beer bucks,” which are good for one case of product per payroll period, she said.</p><p>Sierra Nevada provides a 401k plan that employees are eligible for after 90 days. Once employees are eligible, the company matches dollar-for-dollar what the employee contributes to his or her 401k plan up to 10 percent, with employees also being eligible for profit sharing, Alden explained. </p><p>“It's amazing — it's a really good benefits package,” she said, adding that the Mills River site will boast an employee medical clinic staffed with a physician and a nurse practitioner and on-site day care/preschool for children, grandchildren and nieces and nephews of employees. “These are the things that make us different.” </p><p>The first major wave of hiring is expected to take place in April and May of next year, she said, with about 60 production workers needed to get plant operations under way. The next phase will take place by the end of 2013 and that wave will be designed to hire between 75 and 80 full- and part-time employees primarily for guest experience services, Alden said.</p><p>Key positions such as a head brewer and quality manager and a packaging manager have already been filled, she added. </p><p>An environmental health and safety officer, head electrician, a brewing/cellar/filtration supervisor, packaging supervisor, a systems analyst, warehouse supervisor, sanitation supervisor and a groundskeeper supervisor are all positions Sierra Nevada officials expect to fill in the months leading up to the plant's opening next July, Alden said. </p><p>The company will be assisted in its job placement efforts by Blue Ridge Community College, and, to a lesser extent, the Hendersonville office of the N.C. Division of Workforce Solutions' (formerly the N.C. Employment Security Commission), she said.</p><p>Cooper said he believes Sierra Nevada's Mills River facility will be “a credit to the community.”</p><p>“I think the community will be impressed,” he added. </p><p>Reach Kelley at 828-694-7871 or at leigh.kelley@blueridgenow.com.</p>